1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to double-barrel shotguns of the "side-by-side" and "over-under" varities, and, more particularly, to percussion hammers for such shotguns as well as to means for engaging and tripping of said hammers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As is well known, each percussion hammer in a shotgun is held in an armed position by means of a trip lever, which cooperates with an arresting tooth provided on the hammer and, simultaneously, directly or indirectly engages the trigger for the release of the percussion member. In the most common assemblies, the arresting tooth is provided in the lower part of the hammer or, in any case, in a location substantially below the pivoting axis of the hammer.
However, with such a construction, the lever arm for arresting the hammer is, of necessity, quite short, both with respect to the hammer structure and with respect to the placement of the various elements of the mechanism. This usually requires a greater effort in the operation of arming the hammer and a considerable loss of uniformity and ease of operation of the shotgun, due to the greater force to be applied during the disarming phase of the hammer.
Also known are arrangements in which the arresting tooth of the hammer is provided in the upper part of thereof, so that the trip lever cooperating therewith must be readied in conformity therewith without eliminating the above-mentioned disadvantages.
In the heretofore known arrangements, if it was desired to fully and safely arm the hammers, it was always necessary to completely open the barrels of the shotgun, which operation was not always effected correctly by the hunter or user, especially in the case of "over-under" shotguns, when the shell casing had to be removed from only the upper barrel. In this case, the partial opening of the barrels does not result in either the arming of the hammer or the arresting thereof so that, upon the subsequent closing of the barrels, there always remains the possibility that one hammer may violently strike its respective percussive element causing the accidental discharge of the firearm.
Furthermore, the heretofore known arrangements have the disadvantage that each hammer, when released and pushed by its respective trip spring, has the tendency to constantly engage against the rear terminal of the respective percussion member or striker, thus keeping the striker forwardly displaced. As a result, when the barrels are being opened, the striker, especially the one corresponding to the lower barrel of an "over-under" shotgun, rubs against the bottom of the cartridge and, which is worse, against the breech of the barrel, with consequent reciprocal wear and tear.